Trump continues his unfathomable advancement as the Presumptive Republican nominee, going to Capitol Hill to meet with Speaker Ryan which produced a “sham marriage,” according to Charles Krauthammer.

Why does he say that, you might ask? Because of this, reported in The Hill:

[…] “I’m not among the many who thought it smoothed over the divide,” Krauthammer said on a Fox News panel Thursday evening after the high-profile meeting earlier in the day.

“This is a sham marriage and the reason is simple: good will on both sides, but Paul Ryan is a conservative … Trump has made it clear he’s not a conservative, he’s a nationalist populist,” Krauthammer said. “Those are differences you never bridge.” […] (Click here to read the rest.)

That said, Krauthammer thinks Ryan will eventually endorse Trump. Ugh.

But Ryan wasn’t the only one, as Trump met with some Senators who think if they ask Trump to “soften his tone,” he will. AHAHAHAHA – what a joke that is, and what idiots they are for thinking he would do anything of the kind. Have they not paid attention to ANY of his campaign?? I’d say the chances of that are slim and none, though Trump did say from here on out, he is just going to have SUGGESTIONS. Heaven forbid he have to be held accountable for anything he says, dontcha know.

Which all leads me to his secret. And no, not his tax returns, about which he proclaimed today that his “tax rate is none of your business.” Nope, I am talking about how his numerous media interviews have been conducted. THAT is his big secret – he doesn’t answer difficult queries. The Washington Post has the story (h/t Facebook friend):

[…] Trump is a master of darting from slogan to slogan. That’s why interviewers must do their homework and be prepared to go at least 2-3 questions deep on any issue.

When Trump makes a blunt, sweeping statement like saying he’d “get along very well” with Russian President Vladimir Putin, journalists have to follow up by asking how, specifically, he thinks Putin would respond to increased economic sanctions. If he won’t answer, they should do what conservative Wisconsin talk radio host Charlie Sykes did back in March. Interviewers should say, flatly, “You’re not answering my question.”

Reporters at major news outlets need to inquire more deeply into Trump’s alleged business relationships with mafia-controlled construction companies, and about the way he cut corners to get lavish taxpayer subsidies and government approvals for his hotels and casinos — questions that still lack complete answers since they were raised in Wayne Barrett’s 1992 book, “Trump: The Deals and The Downfall,” and further developed by Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist David Cay Johnston.

Journalists need to remind Trump, and voters, of the many times he’s claimed as fact something demonstrated to be false — that on 9/11, for example, “thousands and thousands of people” in New Jersey Arab American communities cheered the destruction of the Twin Towers. If Trump says he can’t remember, remind him he claimed to have “the world’s greatest memory.”

All along, many of us have complained about Trump literally being able to phone it in, an option the author of this article, Todd Gitlin, notes allows him to consult notes or advisers with no one being the wiser. But it is truly the failure of the “journalists” for letting Trump get away with wholly inaccurate, fanciful, false statements and NOT following up on his statements. Gitlin has a HOST of examples and I urge you to read the entire piece. This part speaks volumes:

[…] It is possible to hold Trump’s feet to the fire. You have to be resolute and persistent.

Tom Wright of Brookings unpacked the history behind Trump’s retro foreign policy platform. The Post’s Robert O’Harrow reported in-depth on Trump’s failed casino ventures. For 2015, PolitiFact made Trump’s aggregated campaign misstatements their “Lie of the Year.” In a few instances, reporters have done it right.

But more often, it looks like interviewers are on a tight leash — maybe because their bosses are blinded by ratings. CBS President Leslie Moonves recently said of the Trump phenomenon: “It may not be good for America, but it’s damn good for CBS.” His admission was both refreshing and revolting in its candor — and goes a long way to explaining why, according to one survey, through February, Trump scored almost $2 billion worth of free media this cycle — about as much as all other candidates together. It poses most acutely a question that goes to the soul — battered as it may be — of journalism. Is the mission to elicit facts and evaluate claims, or to dash off, hell-bent, in the ratings chase? It should be obvious. […] (Click here to read the rest.)

Yes, it SHOULD be obvious, but the media has been all too willing to let this clown show go on unabated by facts or real reporting.

I don’t know if it is too late now or not with Trump – the media continue to do his bidding and giving him massive amounts of free air time. There is an important aspect to Trump’s being on the ticket, though, and one the RNC seems to studiously be avoiding. That would be the impact OF Trump on the ticket. From Affluent Investor (h/t Facebook friend):

The media attention has, understandably, been focused almost entirely on the Presidential race. Relatively little attention has been paid to what impact Donald Trump’s nomination will have on Republican’s chances of retaining the Senate and House majorities. According to the Iowa Electronic Markets, a US-based political futures market, Trump’s candidacy has put both houses of Congress in danger of returning to the Democrats.

Republican control of the Senate has been precarious since it was achieved in 2014. At the start of this cycle, political futures markets put the chances of the Democrats taking back the majority in the Senate at just over 50%. Today, that same outcome is just over 70%.

This chart shows the odds of Donald Trump becoming the Republican nominee, overlaid with the odds of the Democrats winning a majority in the Senate, and the Democrats winning a majority in the House.

The light-blue line is the probability of a Democrat controlled house. It was about 5% in July of 2015, when Donald Trump announced his candidacy. That number went up as the probability of Trump being the nominee went up. Today, the Democrats stand a non-marginal 30% chance of taking back the House. […] (Click here to read the rest.)

Uh, yeah. That’s how it’s looking. The greater the chances of Trump on the ticket, the greater the chances the Democrats take back control. Heckuva job there, RNC.

And on that note, I leave it up to you. I don’t think I can take any more!

neither party gives a damn about the country. the dumb schumks who work and pay taxes are just the cash cows for this bunch to milk.
does it really matter anymore which so-called party is in control? the result is the same.

The media is now on Part II of their plan. First Part was to get Trump elected as the Rep candidate, first because of ratings and second because they knew they had plenty of information to bring him down in November. Proof of this is how much negative information they are now reporting. They were holding on to sound bytes, written information and videos of all the atrocities this mafia candidate has accumulated throughout the years. They are also insisting that he shows his tax returns and will not stop until The Orange gets them out.

Trump is so dumb that he dares negate that all of the facts coming out are true. Of course, we know that all these negatives will not convince his fanatic followers, but it will harm him among minorities, women, independents and Democrats.

The danger in all of this is that the media is also bringing up negatives about Hillary. I am not sure why but it seems that they favor Sanders? We know how much harm they did to Hillary in 2008 and apparently they are doing it again. It is obvious that they hate her as much as they hate Trump.

Republicans are worse. They are so inept that they are bending and trying to convince us that Trump is really, really nice. They are experiencing the most painful and brutal death in history and believe me, they deserve it!

We are doomed, we do not have a decent candidate from which to choose from and therefore, we the people, will suffer the consequences of another rotten President. Unfortunately, Shangri- La is fictional and we are very far from reaching any earthly paradise.

My only power, as a citizen, is documenting through my blog, writing comments in others and my vote. We are living very sad times in America.

You are exactly right, amarissa – that was the plan of the media all along: to report who Trump REALLY is after he all but sewed up the nomination. Reports are coming out now that his butler is being investigated for threats against Obama; they are actually asking him where his tax returns are; and more.And of course, the Clinton camp has PLENTY of ammunition to use against Trump.

It would not surprise me one bit if they all wanted Sanders the Socialist this time around. Obama probably didn’t go far enough left for the media.

You are not only kidding abt the way the RNC is trying to reframe who Trump is, as if he is a nice, decent man who will do great things for this country. It is pathetic and wholly transparent. All it does is make people hate them more.

We are indeed living in sad times. I never thought I would see this country in the shape it is now. We have a President making menacing announcements abt BATHROOMS as if that is the biggest problem this nation faces. We have a Socialist who wants a “revolution” doing particularly well because our Educational system has failed to TEACH on a massive level, instead pushing an ideology that is clear as day in our universities. It is truly astonishing.

I am so disheartened by everything that it’s really difficult for me to even function today. Tomorrow may, probably will be different but today just sucks worse than usual. Every where I look or read it is dismal news. So I tell myself that…

I completely understand, Marge – truly. It has been hard getting motivated to write abt this campaign because I am so disgusted by the whole thing…

As for the poor decision, the grandfather of a friend of mine was friends with two brothers in Atlanta – one was a pharmacist who came up with a concoction he wanted to market. The pharmacist asked if y friend’s grandfather was interested in going in on it with him, but after conferring with the other brother, decided not to do so.

CNN is doing a pretty good job on her and Trump. I am watching them more now since FOX is all things orange now! Even The Five which was my favorite! The only ones left are Dana, Megyn and Bret and I am watching Dana real close. Megyn will leave FOX News after November, I am sure because of things she has said. We will have to see on Tuesday when she runs against O’Reilly in the 8PM time slot at FOX Channel with her one hour special. I hope she beats him big in ratings!

However, if Hillary is trashed to the point that she loses, who do we have left, Sanders???? Trump??? Either one will be the worst thing that could happen to us, don’t you think? I am really, really hoping that Trump crashes before the Convention and they are forced to pick another candidate, that, I think, is the last hope we have.

At this point I don’t know what to think. Trump and his surrogates are running around spouting nonsense. Every day something new comes to light about him. And none of it positive.

The problem I see with a convention pick is that neither the Trumpster Trash not the Cruz supporters will be happy with anyone else. Especially if their perceive it as an establishment trick to foist an establishment nominee on them. Then I think so many will stay home that Hillary will win easier than she would have won against Trump.

She should be under indictment for putting classified information on her private server. But the Obama Administration isn’t about to let that happen. They don’t care about her but if his former SoS is indicted it tarnishes his “legacy”. As if it wasn’t tarnished enough all ready were there an honest media to report it.

I agree Trumpsters would stay home but at least the Republican Party will not be blamed for supporting such a huge piece of trash. If they allow Trump to run their brand will be pushed aside for many more years or maybe forever. They should act responsibly and admit that Trump would be very harmful for the country. Believe me they know they are pushing the worst candidate in history and they should stop him before is too late. To me, that would be the honest thing to do, but hey, who is honest in politics? I am fed up with both parties and do not like the other alternatives either. Let’s pray for a miracle?

From what Dana Periono said the other day abt why the two Bushes were NOT going to endorse Trump, I am hoping she stands strong. But besides her and Greg, oh, and Megan now that she endorsed Cruz, I have given up watching Fox altogether.

I do hope Hillary is covered more, and it sure would be nice if more places highlighted Trump getting the judge to acquiesce to postponing his Fraud Trial until after the election, too.

I just cannot believe this election is coming down to this. Seriously. Oh, and I will NEVER vote for a Socialist either, so really, none of the three remaining are the least bit palatable in any way, shape, or form. SOMETHING has to give, and I hope Trump completely implodes.

Really – whining abt WaPo targeting him?? Yeah, it’s called an election, and it’s abt damn time he started being held to account for what he has said.

I hope you are right about Dana, I really like her and it would hurt me if she supported Trump. CNN is really hitting Hillary also and right now they are the least biased (let’s see how long it lasts!).

Completely agree with you: ” I will NEVER vote for a Socialist either, so really, none of the three remaining are the least bit palatable in any way, shape, or form.”

Having watching a few of these clips of Trump spox people you have to wonder what they are thinking. Nothing will change the mind of a dedicated Trumpanzee but seeing fools likes this certainly isn’t going to gain him any more followers. Does she honestly not realize that comparing Trump to Obama in such a way is anathema to Republicans? Or is she just that stupid?

It is truly astonishing, isn’t it? Especially to Obama’s HUGE lie he spewed relentlessly and the anger abt it. But yeah – his minions won’t care abt that either, further proving how deep in the Trump cult they are…

As for her intellect, I never found her to be at all bright, which also puts to a lie a claim Trump and his minions spew: that he will pick the BEST people. Uh, yeah, no…